[1]The Consort is Both Charming and Scheming, Rising Through Palace Intrigue

The Empress raised her wine cup, intending to toast Emperor Xiao Yu, but noticed he was staring blankly at the wine in his cup, his gaze drifting toward the lower ranks of the banquet.

The Empress slowly lowered her cup, her own gaze following, unsure of what—or who—he was looking at. Her eyes darkened slightly.

The banquet ended just like that. Cheng Yin and Ning Shuyan strolled slowly back to their palace.

Along the way, Cheng Yin kept sneaking glances at Ning Shuyan as if wanting to ask something but hesitating. Ning Shuyan gave a faint smile. "Just ask whatever you want. You're usually so straightforward—why so hesitant today?"

Only then did Cheng Yin speak: "You... had a fight with His Majesty?"

Ning Shuyan gently waved her fan, smiling with pursed lips. "We didn't argue. Why do you ask?"

"Lately... His Majesty hasn't been to your palace."

Cheng Yin had grown used to being neglected—after a brief period of favor when she first entered the palace, she now only saw Xiao Yu two or three times a month. But Ning Shuyan was different. Normally, the emperor visited her almost every other day.

So for her, it was quite unusual that the emperor hadn't visited in over half a month.

Ning Shuyan's loose strands of hair fluttered lightly in the breeze. She gave a calm smile. "It's not like he's been going anywhere else either."

Others might not know, but Ning Shuyan was well aware that Xiao Yu hadn't forgotten her. The things sent from the Imperial Household Department—many of them not meant for someone of her rank—clearly bore his instructions.

She also understood that his current favor toward Consort Zhuang had its own purpose.

Cheng Yin nodded slightly. "True. You said before that her arrogance wouldn't last long. Could it be..."

A sudden realization flashed through her mind—her father had once said the emperor was wary of the Nangong family.

She looked at Ning Shuyan in astonishment and saw her smile and nod slightly. Cheng Yin was briefly stunned, then clapped her hands in delight, the crisp sound echoing: "That's great! That day has finally come."

Perhaps due to her good mood, even the breeze from her fan felt especially refreshing.

Meanwhile, on her way back to her palace, Consort Zhuang happened to encounter Xiao Jingyou playing with a slingshot. She frowned. "Isn't the Crown Prince supposed to be back at his palace? Why is he still out playing?"

Yulan glanced at him and replied with a smile, "I heard His Majesty praised the prince for his accuracy with the slingshot, so the Empress allowed him to play for half an hour each day."

Consort Zhuang gave Xiao Jingyou a meaningful look. After a moment, she tapped the side of her sedan chair. "Stop."

At her order, the bearers slowly and steadily lowered the sedan. Yulan helped her out, while another maid held up a parasol.

Gracefully, she walked over to Xiao Jingyou, just as he shot a marble right onto a eunuch's hat. Consort Zhuang smiled gently. "Your aim is quite impressive, Your Highness."

Xiao Jingyou turned and bowed politely. "Greetings, Consort Zhuang."

Consort Zhuang smiled radiantly, her warmth like sunshine. "His Majesty told me just how skilled you are with a slingshot. Seeing it today, I must agree."

Xiao Jingyou beamed with pride. "Really? Father told you that himself?"

With exaggerated kindness, she wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Of course. He said it to me personally."

Xiao Jingyou was touched by her gentle gesture—few in the palace treated him so warmly. His mother used to say that Consort Zhuang was bad and detestable. But looking at her now, she didn't seem like a bad person at all.

Consort Zhuang looked at the servants nearby. "Leave us. I have something to say to the prince."

The eunuchs obediently retreated several paces. Only Nanny Liu remained stubbornly close.

Consort Zhuang quickly added, "I won't harm him. Stand a little farther back."

Though she didn't dare disobey, Nanny Liu was supposed to stay close to the prince, leaving her a little torn.

Xiao Jingyou said, "Nanny, it's fine. Step back."

With no other choice, she complied and moved away.

Consort Zhuang gently caressed Xiao Jingyou's cheek and sighed with both sorrow and affection.

"Is something bothering you, Consort Zhuang?" he asked.

She shook her head slowly, a touch of melancholy on her face. "I just feel sorry for you. So young, and already without your mother."

At the mention of his mother, Xiao Jingyou's expression dimmed. He lowered his gaze. "Mother Empress said she will care for me now. She said she's like my mother too."

He meant the Empress.

Consort Zhuang shook her head, sighing again. "Silly child. Only your real mother will truly love you the most. Once the Empress has her own child, will she still care for you?"

Xiao Jingyou didn't fully understand, but he caught the meaning—his real mother was better than the Empress.

With his mother, he could cry and throw tantrums freely. But with the Empress, he couldn't. She'd get angry and stop caring about him.

Consort Zhuang continued softly, "If not for Lady Zhao, your mother wouldn't have died so tragically."

Xiao Jingyou looked at her with confusion. "Are you saying my mother died because of Lady Zhao?"

Consort Zhuang gazed at him with pity. "If Lady Zhao hadn't constantly pressured your mother, she wouldn't have tried to poison her. Lady Zhao never even drank that medicine and came away unharmed. But your mother..."

She trailed off with a heavy sigh.

Xiao Jingyou frowned deeply, tugging on the leather band of his slingshot. He didn't fully understand her words, but one thing was clear—

His mother died because of Lady Zhao.

After Consort Zhuang left, he had no more interest in playing. He asked Nanny Liu whether his mother had died because of Lady Zhao.

She fumbled for words, unwilling to answer. How could she?

She'd raised the prince since birth, almost like a son. How could she tell him the cruel truth—that his mother had been vicious and was executed by the emperor for her crimes?

That would be far too cruel for a child.

After some thought, she took his hand and said solemnly, "Your mother's death was indeed because of Lady Zhao... but child, that was her fate."

Young as he was, Xiao Jingyou couldn't grasp the concept of fate. He only understood that Lady Zhao had something to do with his mother's death.

The golden sunlight scattered across the ground. A breeze blew a single leaf from a tree, gilded with light as it drifted down like it had lost its way home.

Xiao Jingyou stared blankly at the slowly falling leaf.

If not for Lady Zhao, Mother wouldn't have died!

He threw his slingshot to the ground. "I don't want to play anymore! I'm going back!"

Then he began shouting and fussing. Nanny Liu quickly tried to soothe him as she led him back to Qingyun Hall.